Israel picks Shiri Maimon for Eurovision
Israel's last winner in the European song contest was Dana International in 1998
Shiri Maimon will represent Israel in the 2005 Eurovision Song Contest after winning the competition held Wednesday night to select the country's entry.
The 24-year-old was chosen from a field of 14 performers in the competition broadcast Wednesday night by Channel 1 TV.
Maimon rose to fame when she finished second in Israel’s “A Star is Born” television show, which is similar to “American Idol” in the United States.
“It was very exciting for me,” Maimon said. “I got too much into it, and I nearly cried in the middle of the song. For me it’s a tremendous honor to represent the country. I wasn’t someone who always followed the Eurovision, but this is a wonderful thing for my career and to try my luck.”
Maimon, who sang “Hasheket Shenishar” (“The Quiet Left Behind”) has no plans to add English lyrics to the version of the song she will perform at the Eurovision contest.
“Lots of people told me to sing something up-tempo, a song in English, a song they’ll be crazy about in Europe, and not something quiet, but from the start when they wrote the lyrics and the music for the song, I knew it would be the one I would win with.”
Maimon, who is originally from Kiryat Haim, appeared in the first season of “A Star is Born” and finished second.
Israel has won the contest three times, most recently in 1998 when Dana International performed the song "Diva." The other Israeli winners were Izar Cohen and Alpha-Beta with the song "A-ba-ni-bi" (1978) and Gali Atari and Milk & Honey with Hallelujah (1979).
